Sunday, 30 March 2014

I had only been a few months
since the last time I saw Double
Indemnity but today’s watch of the noir inflected The Lost Weekend made me want to step back a year earlier to
revisit Billy Wilder at the height of the genre. Double Indemnity could be described as the archetypical film noir.
Although the genre stretches back further than the film’s 1944 release, it was Double Indemnity which provided the blue
prints from which later titles took their queues. Famous today for its voice-over, use of venetian blind lighting and provocative femme fatale, at the
17th Academy Awards the picture was nominated for seven Oscars.
Although it ultimately left that ceremony empty handed, the movie’s reputation
has gone from strength to strength and it currently sits inside the top thirty
on the AFI’s poll of 20th Century movies.

The film is told in flashback and
voiceover by Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray). Neff is a talented insurance
salesman who becomes an active participant in a murder plot following a chance
meeting with the seductive Phyllis Dietrichson (Barbara Stanwyck). Neff is at
the Dietrichson household with the hope of persuading Mr. Dietrichson to renew
his motor insurance when he’s presented with the beguiling temptress that is
the lady of the house. Blinded by love or at the very least passion, Neff
agrees to help the lady to murder her husband and share in the insurance pay
out. Having constructed an elaborate murder plot, Neff’s firm and in particular
the capable Barton Keys (Edward G. Robinson) are charged with working out how
the supposed accidental death of Mr. Dietrichson occurred.

Billy Wilder’s multi award
winning The Lost Weekend was one of
the first movies to tackle the pull of alcohol head on. The fantastic script
details four days in the life of long time alcoholic Don Birnam (Ray Milland)
who despite his best intentions to stay sober, ends up down an ever spiralling
path of addiction. The winner of four Oscars and nominated for three more on
top, The Lost Weekend was one of
Wilder’s most lauded films and has lost little of its potency in the near
seventy years since its release. Opening in the apartment which Birnam shares
with his long suffering and devoted bother, Wick Birnam (Phillip Terry) is
attempting to get his brother out of the city and away from the temptation of
liquor for a few days. He hopes that the cold turkey approach will aid in his
brother’s recovery and allow him the time and clear head to write – a career
which Don attributes to himself with little evidence of success.

This first scene displays Don’s
dependency through the use of the first of several hidden bottles of rye.
Whilst packing, Don tries to slip into his case a bottle which he has attached
to a rope swinging outside his window. This, unlike many other bottles is soon
discovered but Don still manages to wriggle out of the booze free break and
instead settles in for a weekend of petty criminality and hard drinking. Don’s
first act of cruelty in the pursuit of his fix is to steal the $10 which his
brother has left for the housekeeper. He lies to her that the money (her wage)
isn’t waiting for her and purchases two bottles before heading to the bar for a
drink. The look on Don’s face when he is presented with the short glass of
light brown liquid tells us all we need to know about his addition. He’s like a
child of Christmas Day, eager, excited, unable to wait. The first drink is
downed and swiftly followed by several more.

Thursday, 27 March 2014

Richard Ayoade’s second film and
follow up to 2010’s critically acclaimed Submarine
is The Double, a dark comedy based on
Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s satirical novella of the same name. Set in a subterranean
hinterland of unknowable time and location, the film follows the life of
lonely, ignored and unseen data imputer Simon James (Jesse Eisenberg). Simon
floats through life unnoticed by those around him, stating that he feels as
though people could almost reach through him as though he wasn’t there. When a
new co-worker is introduced, Simon is shocked to discover that he looks and
sounds exactly like himself. His doppelgänger though is everything he is not;
cocky, outgoing and highly visible.

The Double could easily have been a film that was known for its
story. Based on the work of one of the literary greats of the nineteenth
century, the film has the narrative already safely mapped out and it indeed
delivers an interesting and complex story. In the hands of Ayoade though, this
film will be remembered for more; chiefly its design and sound. Richard Ayoade
has constructed a magnificent film that evokes so much but remains unique. It’s
beautiful and funny, grim and depressing all in equal measure.

Friday, 7 March 2014

Touch of Evil is only the second film I’ve seen to be directed by
Orson Welles but both are amongst the most beautifully constructed I’ve ever
seen. Based on the novel Badge of Evil,
legend has it that Welles challenged producer Albert Zugsmith to provide him
with the worst script available, which Welles promised to turn into a great
film. Whether true or not, the second part of that sentence is utterly correct.
Welles turned out a terrific picture which is handsomely directed, tightly written
and wonderfully acted.

The movie opens on a famous three
minute and twenty second tracking shot, a shot which has been copied by and
influenced scores of film makers since. A car is loaded with a bomb and is then
driven across the Mexican border, into Texas.
After exploding on the American side of the crossing, a newlywed Mexican drug
enforcement official named Miguel Vargas (Charlton Heston) is one of the first
on the scene. After ushering his wife (Janet Leigh) to safety, he quickly
assesses the crime but is soon pushed to one side by the old, dependable local
Police Captain, Hank Quinlan (Orson Welles). Quinlan and Vargas chase the leads
but soon Vargas begins to believe that his American counterpart isn’t playing
fair.

Saturday, 15 February 2014

About four or five years ago, I
couldn’t imagine being excited about a Matthew McConaughey film but then came
his McConaissance and on the back of tremendous performances in the likes of Killer Joe, Mud and The Wolf of Wall Street, he’s quickly becoming one of my favourite actors of recent times. I
still can’t believe it. His latest provides us with perhaps his finest
performance to date and accompanies a terrific film which instantly becomes one
of my favourites of the young year.

Based on a true story, McConaughey
plays Ron Woodroof, a Texan rodeo cowboy come electrician who enjoys women,
beer, drugs, women and women. Having been obviously sick for a while, he is
taken to hospital and when wakes, is given the shocking news that he has HIV.
This being mid 1980s Texas,
Woodroof is, shall we say, taken aback by the news but more worried about
accusations that he’s homosexual or ‘faggot’ as he rather ineloquently puts it.
After denial and some research plus a stint in a hospital south of the border,
Ron discovers that he can help himself and fellow HIV patients by smuggling
unapproved medicine into the USA,
a decision that puts him on a collision course with the FDA and the American
Justice Department.

Sunday, 9 February 2014

It Happened One Night is a Pre Code romantic comedy/road movie
directed by Frank Capra. At the 7th Academy Awards in February 1935,
the film won an unprecedented haul of awards, becoming the first film to win
‘the big five’ of Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress and Screenplay. The
feat went unmatched for over forty years and has only ever been matched twice.
Although slow to catch on with critics and the public alike, word of mouth
turned it into an unstoppable box office hit becoming Columbia’s highest grossing movie up to that
point. Eighty years on from its release, the film remains an irresistible
picture, combining drama and romance with a sizable dollop of Pre Code
sentiment and behaviour.

Based on the short story Night Bus, the plot concerns a young
heiress called Ellen Andrews (Claudette Colbert) who runs away from her
comfortable lifestyle after her father attempts to have her marriage to a newly
met aviator annulled. Aboard a bus to New
York City she meets a down and out reporter called
Peter Warne (Clark Gable). Warne is cocky and carefree and soon discovers
there’s a story in the runaway girl. He agrees to help fund her journey to New York in return for
cooperation on his story and the two begin a series of adventures on their way
to the city.

Paperman is a 2012 animated short and the first Disney animated
short film to win an Oscar since 1969. Released alongside the feature length Wreck-It Ralph, it’s a seven minute
movie about a chance encounter and longing for love. Set in 1940s New York City, George is
waiting for his elevated train to work when a gust of wind throws one of his
papers into the face of a pretty girl waiting on the same platform. Her lips
leave a lipstick imprint on the paper and the duo laugh coyly at the incident
before she gets onto her train. Later the same day, George is thinking about
the incident while looking out of his office window when he spots the woman in
a room on the other side of the street. In an attempt to draw her attention, he
makes paper aeroplanes, launching them towards her open window.

Paperman is beautifully drawn with clean black and white lines and
wonderful period detail. It’s reminiscent of the Hollywood Golden Age and
features lovely period design. The animation is elegant and very much in
keeping with classic Disney. Both central characters appear to have been taken
from the stock character cupboard at Disney with Meg taking the form of a
Disney Princess in mid century attire and George as the affable and harmless
Prince in a suit. Although the animation is very ‘Disney’, it also smacks of
realism. The expressions and movement speaks of the animation we all know and
love but the background, tone and environment are much more realistic looking
than in the cartoons of Disney’s heyday. The use of light is also evocative and
adds to the sense of romance that the short exudes throughout. It also helps to
capture that Golden Age vibe.

The plot is simple and sweet and
something everyone can relate to. It’s based on the idea of a brief connection
or spark between two people, something that those of us in large cities must
feel often. I think that most people would have spotted a look or glance or
caught eyes with a stranger and wondered what they might be like or how you’d
get on. This takes that idea and runs with it. Like a lot of recent animated
shorts, it’s incredibly simple but brilliantly effective. My only complaint is
with the anthropomorphism of the paper in the final moments. It works well but
I enjoyed the realism of the earlier stages. Overall though, this is yet
another example of the kind of talent and creativity that Disney Animation
Studios has to offer and like so many recent shorts, I enjoyed it more than its
feature companion.

Sunday, 26 January 2014

Nominated for eleven Academy
Awards but having the misfortune of being released in the same year as Gone with the Wind, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is a political comedy-drama that stands
the test of time. Though produced and set in 1939, the film feels as fresh and
relevant as the day of its release and contains the breakthrough performance of
one of Hollywood’s
greats, James Stewart. Stewart plays Jefferson Smith, the head of the Boy
Rangers, local newspaper owner and all around good guy. When one of his state’s
Senators unexpectedly dies, the local political machine looks for a replacement
that will be popular with the people but keep his nose out of their shady
political dealings. After much deliberation it’s decided that Smith is their
man and he heads off to Washington,
wide eyed and wet behind the ears.

Although this is very much Jimmy
Stewart’s film, he was given second billing to co-star Jean Arthur. Arthur was
already a star by 1939 whereas Stewart was very much on his way up, on the back
of strong supporting roles in the likes of Navy
Blue and Gold and You Can’t Take It
With You, which as with Mr. Smith
was directed by Frank Capra. Stewart launches himself with this role though and
despite his long and successful career, this is remains one of his defining performances.

Saturday, 25 January 2014

A Hollywood
remake of the 1935 French movie Fanfare d'Amour, Some Like It Hot is widely regarded as amongst the funniest
and most cherished films in the history of cinema. Written, Produced and
Directed by one of cinema’s finest, Billy Wilder, it stars Tony Curtis and Jack
Lemmon as destitute musicians, eking out a living in prohibition era Chicago. Having
accidentally witnessed the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, the two men go on the
lamb and hop on a train to Florida.
In order to go unnoticed by the Mob they disguise themselves as women and join
an all female band heading to Miami.
Amongst the band members is Sugar (Marilyn Monroe) who both men (obviously)
fall for.

I’ve wanted to see Some Like It Hot for a long time and having
finally got around to it last night, I can report that I wasn’t disappointed.
Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond’s script is rich, saucy and hilarious while full of
the sort of bawdy double entendre that would have been impossible to get passed
censors in the years before. In fact, along with the likes of Hitchcock’s Psycho
and Wilder’s own The Apartment, it was just this sort of movie which saw
to the decline and eventually dismemberment of the dreaded Hays/Breen Code that
had constricted Hollywood since the early 1930s.

Sunday, 19 January 2014

I first saw the multi award
winning Gravity in November last year
during my non writing phase but it’s a film that I felt I needed to see again. Gravity is a game changer as far as
visual effects are concerned and it appears to have re-written the rule book
for films set in space. So over two months and $675 million at the box office after
its initial release, I was able to take in the film’s awesome effects once more
in stunning 3D. I’ll be honest, I never expected to use the words ‘stunning’
and ‘3D’ in the same sentence but Gravity
is the first film I’ve seen for which 3D was the right choice and actually
added something to the movie.

Rather than working on a two
dimensional plane as most films do, Gravity
has a full 360 degree scope to work within. The camera is able to, and expected
to move around the entire scene, not limited by space or ironically gravity.
The use of 3D is completely justified and adds immeasurably to the feeling of
floating as well as helps to place the film in its environment. The opening
scene of an astronaut moving around a shuttle with wanton ease is spectacular
and things only get better from there. Thousands if not millions of tiny pieces
of satellite erupt in a magnificent burst high above the earth and set off
complex chain reactions which are visually stunning as well as incredibly
frightening.

Sunday, 12 January 2014

Get a Horse! Is a dazzling and enchanting Disney animated short
that was featured prior to the feature length film Frozen in cinemas. Wonderfully mixing antique and modern animation
it’s a feast for the eyes and a reminder of how good Disney once was and what
it’s capable of today. Directed by Lauren MacMullen, the first woman to solo
direct a Disney film, it takes inspiration from Buster Keaton’s Sherlock Jr with its stepping through
the screen antics.

The plot follows the typical type
of early Mickey Mouse short. Using hand drawn, black and white animation,
Mickey is enjoying a musical wagon ride with Minnie Mouse when they are pounced
upon by the wicked Peg-Leg Pete in his automobile. Spying Minnie, Pete attempts
to steal her from our hero and drive off into the sunset with her as his prize.
Following a brief fight, Mickey and his steed Horace are literally pushed
through the cinema screen and become bold, brightly coloured modern versions of
themselves. Hilarity then ensues as the fight goes back and forth between monochrome
and colour, old and new.

I thought this film was
incredibly witty and inventive. Initially I assumed the short was a re-release
of an old classic and had no idea that the characters were about to be launched
into the 21st Century. The traditional black and white animation is
exquisite and the soundtrack is excellent to match. I’m not as much a fan of
the newer style but that might just be my old codger-ness coming through.
Throughout its seven minute runtime, the film was drawing laughs from young and
old in the cinema and was hopefully introducing the younger members of the
audience to the wonderful older style of animation. The score is bouncy and
full of brass and made my feet bop along from start to finish while it also makes use of archive audio to capture the real voices of Walt Disney, Marcellite Garner and Billy Bletcher, all long deceased. This really is a
wonderful Disney short, the best I’ve seen in ages.

Sunday, 22 December 2013

It’s been a few weeks now since I
saw Nebraska, Alexander Payne’s monochrome
comedy-drama and I didn’t originally intend to write about it. But of all the
films I’ve seen in the last couple of months, it’s the one that has stayed with
me the longest. Nebraska stars Bruce Dern as Woody, a
grouchy old man whose moments of lucidity are swamped by his seemingly frail
mind. Woody receives a sweepstakes letter which tells him of a million dollar
prize win which he is determined to collect in person. Despite warnings from
his family that the prize is bogus, Woody is undeterred and eventually his son
David (Will Forte) agrees to drive across country to Lincoln, Nebraska
with his father to pick up the winnings. Along the way the pair stops in
Woody’s small hometown where he reconnects with the past.

At this late stage in 2013, Nebraska
stands as one of the best films I’ve seen all year. It’s an absolute delight,
merging neo-realism with caricature in a way that I’ve rarely witnessed before.
It manages to be both grounded but quirky, serious and flippant and focuses in
the everyday side of America
rarely featured in Hollywood films. The
characters don’t moan about money while living in mansions or complain about
their dream jobs, these are Middle Americans, dealing with normal issues and I
couldn’t take my eyes off the screen.

Wednesday, 4 September 2013

Rush, the latest offering from director Ron Howard, is an
exhilarating and dramatic biographical action movie set in the glamorous world
of the 1970s Formula One driver. Being a fairly faithful retelling of true
events, the movie focuses on the careers of and rivalry between Austria’s Nikki
Laura (Daniel Bruhl) and Britain’s James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) in the mid
1970s during which the pair were the cream of the motor racing world. Though
the movie begins in 1970, the main thrux of the plot is the 1976 F1 season
during which the pair’s rivalry and willingness to put themselves in the path
of danger reached an all time high before the season reached a dramatic climax
in Japan.

I need to mention very early on
that personally I’m a huge fan of Formula One and have only missed around three
races since my first in 1994. I love the history, the strategy and the
technology of the sport and would rank it amongst my biggest passions. Because
of this I was worried that my judgement of the film would be clouded but I’m
confident that the film is good enough that my love of its backdrop hasn’t
affected my enjoyment. In many ways the movie reminded me of the sublime BAFTA
award winning documentary Senna in
that although both movies are about F1 and F1 drivers, they could be about
anything. It’s the story and characters who make both films great. They could
be set within any discipline.

Tuesday, 6 August 2013

Belleville Rendez-vous, known as The Triplets of Belleville outside of my
native United Kingdom,
is a 2003 Oscar nominated animated feature, written and directed by the
mastermind behind the similarly styled 2010 Oscar nominated The Illusionist. The film tells the
surrealist story of a doting grandma who trains her grandson to compete in the
Tour de France before he is kidnapped by the mob. Determined to return him to
his native France, she
tracks him to Belleville (modelled on New York City) where she
and her obese dog befriend the Belleville Triplets, a formerly popular music
hall act.

As well as reminding me of
director Sylvain Chomet’s quite and masterful feature, The Illusionist, the animation is also reminiscent of classic Disney.
The still backdrops and wildly grotesque characters remain faithful to the
animation found in the likes of Dumbo
or Pinocchio but are darker and drawn
with the animator’s tongue firmly in cheek. The animation also displays modern
touches but these are counteracted by the wonderfully realised mid twentieth
century setting. There are even flairs of psychedelia present and side
characters such as an overly foppish waiter and henchmen who seem conjoined at
their ridiculously overgrown shoulders wouldn’t look out of place in a dehydrated Yellow Submarine.The surrealist nature of the animation also
extends beyond the character and occasionally creeps into inanimate objects too
where it is befitting of the plot.

Thursday, 25 July 2013

Dead Man’s Shoes is a psychological revenge thriller, co-written
and directed by the toast of the British critical community, Shane Meadows.
Writing with Paul Fraser and Paddy Considine, who also stars, the film focuses
on the return to a small northern town of an ex-soldier who reappears after his
little brother is humiliated by a group of local drug dealers. The film opens
with little back story and reveals itself through the use of grainy, black and
white flashbacks, building a picture of the events which lead up to the current
plot as it progresses in ever more violent and sadistic ways. It saves its
biggest and best reveal until close to the conclusion in a feat of wonderful
storytelling which put a delicious cherry on top of an already appealing
cinematic cake.

Although Shane Meadows is
considered to be one of the brightest talents in UK cinema, I’ve never really found
myself that blown away by his films. I can appreciate his style and especially
the way in which he gets his films made but they’ve never done anything for me.
This changed with Dead Man’s Shoes
and instantly became my favourite film from a director I hadn’t really got
until now. Not only do I think it’s one of Meadows’ best but I’m struggling to
think of a better independent British film from the past decade too.

Sunday, 14 July 2013

I can’t imagine having to wait
nine years for Before Sunset to come
around. Released nearly a decade after Before Sunrise, a film with a remarkable and original will they/won’t they
conclusion, the film picks up the lives of Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céline
(Julie Delpy) after their one night romance in Vienna in 1995. It should be
noted before I go on that this review may well contain spoilers for Before Sunrise so if you haven’t seen
that movie yet, beware. I saw Before Sunrise earlier today and the hour long wait between films felt like a
lifetime to me, so engrossed in the character’s stories was I. I can’t believe
that there are people who had to endure nine years of not knowing what happened
after Céline and Jesse went their separate ways.

The film opens in a Parisian book
shop where Jesse, now an author is answering questions about his latest book.
Towards the end of the interview he notices Céline standing in the corner and
instantly loses his train of thought. He manages to sneak away for a coffee
with his former fling before a 7:30 pm deadline to catch a flight. It’s on the
way to the café that we the audience have our hearts broken. The pair didn’t
meet in Vienna
six months after the end of the first film. They in fact haven’t seen each
other since that magical night nine years ago.

A chance meeting aboard a train
from Budapest to Paris results in a wonderfully constructed
whirlwind romance for two strangers. Jesse (Ethan Hawke) is travelling alone
through Europe when he begins talking to the
pretty French lady across the isle from him. That woman is Céline (Julie Delpy)
who is on her way back to Paris
after visiting her grandmother in the Hungarian capital. They strike up a
friendly conversation which continues in the dining car before Jesse’s stop in Vienna approaches.
Sensing a connection he suggests that Céline disembarks with him to continue
their discussion. She impulsively agrees and the duo spends the night wandering
Vienna
together.

Before Sunrise lacks any sort of plot but is nevertheless
beautifully written and structured. I never once wished for something to happen
besides the continuing conversation and discovery. The dialogue is deeply woven
and superbly delivered by two actors on top form. Their connection seems so
real that it’s hard to believe that the actors themselves didn’t end up
together. Nothing is forced and the conversations meander naturally while at
all times remaining high brow and intellectually stimulating. Occasionally
there is a lull in the engagement I had with the dialogue but this still works
as it’s how one would react when listening to any long conversation.

Thursday, 11 July 2013

1955’s The Night of the Hunter was the first and sadly last film to be
directed by famed theatre and screen actor Charles Laughton. Though panned by
audiences and critics on its theatrical release, the film has grown in statue
over the years and is now widely regarded as a great work. Featuring
expressionistic touches and unsettling themes, the film stands apart from the
safer, noir tinted thrillers of its day. The plot features a villain so wicked
that he scared me, an adult used to modern horror, nearly sixty years after he
first appeared.

Robert Mitchum plays Reverend
Harry Powell; a preacher turned serial killer who learns of a hidden fortune.
While in prison on a minor charge, Powell shares a cell with Ben Harper (Peter
Graves), a man serving a long sentence for robbery and murder. Before his
arrest, Harper was able to hide his loot of $10,000, telling his children but
no one else where the money was. Powell is able to track down the fatherless
family and attempts to get the secret from the children while hiding his intent
behind his squeaky clean, ministerial front.

Wednesday, 3 July 2013

McCullin is a little seen documentary about the life of famed
photojournalist Donald McCullin. Nominated for two BAFTA awards, the film
charts the career of its subject from his humble beginnings in poverty ridden Finsbury Park,
London in the
late 1950s, through his many and varied warzone assignments and towards his
later, peaceful retirement. The documentary is narrated by and features
extended interviews with the man himself and gives great insight into the reasons
behind his adventures as well as descriptions of often horrific events and how
he composed some of his most famous photographs.

For several years Don McCullin
has been my favourite photographer having stumbled upon an exhibition of his
war photography at the National Media Museum
in Bradford. I’ve since been to another of his
exhibitions in Manchester
and one of his many photographic books became my most expensive book purchase
ever at the second exhibition. I’d been looking forward to seeing the film
since its original release and was thrilled to find it on television late last
night as part of The BBC’s Insight series.

Saturday, 1 June 2013

Sherlock Jr is rightly considered as one of the many great films of
Buster Keaton’s career. The movie introduces many technical innovations and
complex stunts which run side by side the screen comedian’s usual deadpan
humour and sight gags to create one of his and the era’s best. A lowly movie
theatre projectionist (Keaton) has two dreams in life. He wants to be a
detective and wants to snare the love of his life. After being framed by a love
rival for a burglary at the girl’s house he is banished, told never to return.
His attempts to solve the crime and clear his name come to a dead end so he
returns to the cinema where he falls asleep behind the projector. Here, the man
literally splits in two (using double exposure) and the dream version of Sherlock
Jr enters the movie screen where he has much more success at solving crimes and
attracting the attention of beautiful women.

Few films from the era (or any
era) display as much inventiveness or technical nouse as Sherlock Jr. Working at a time before many of the cinematic
inventions that we take for granted today, including sound of course, Keaton
here constructs a beautifully observed comedy which combines the detective
genre with an introspective study of his medium while using romance as a framing
device. The movie is, at just forty-four minutes, much shorter than most of his
features, straddling somewhere between short and feature but barely a second of
screen time is wasted with jokes coming thick and fast. If comedy ever does run
dry, the eyes are dazzled with a technical marvel or bone crunching stunt which
ninety years on, will still make the audience wince.